In general, an equipment rack is a rigid frame-like structure for supporting an assortment of electronic equipment. The front of such a rack typically includes a pair of parallel vertical rails disposed a standard distance apart. The rails define mounting holes (e.g., pre-drilled circular holes, square holes, etc.) to enable electronic equipment to secure to the rails. Such a rack is suitable for supporting components of various electronic systems such as a general purpose computer system, a data storage system, network equipment, test equipment, power supply equipment, other types of equipment and combinations thereof.
Equipment racks are available in a variety of standard sizes. For example, one common width for an equipment rack is 19 inches, e.g., the mounting holes are approximately 18.3 inches apart. For this standard-width rack, electronic equipment manufacturers provide electronic equipment in chassis having heights in standard Rack Units. A Rack Unit (U) is 1.75 inches and typically covers the distance of two or three mounting holes along the rails of the front of the rack. It is common for conventional 19-inch equipment chassis to have heights in whole increments within the range of 1U to 6U""s (e.g., 1U, 2U, 3U, and so on).
A typical equipment rack provides approximately 40 to 44 mounting holes along the vertical direction, i.e., along the rails. As such, the rack is well-suited for supporting electronic equipment (processors, disk drive arrays, network switches, power supplies, etc.), shelves, drawers, etc.
It is common for equipment rack manufacturers to offer blank panels or filler panels to cover unused openings of equipment racks. For example, suppose that a user purchases an equipment rack to house a data storage system. The user may populate the equipment rack with a variety of components (e.g., a power supply, a battery backup system, circuit boards, a disk drive array, etc.). After the user installs the equipment, the user may be left with a few standard-sized openings which remain unfilled (e.g., openings ranging between 1U and 6U""s in height). The user can install blank panels to cover these openings thus preventing sensitive or critical equipment from being exposed (e.g., to prevent external objects from inadvertently entering the rack and contacting the equipment, to discourage unauthorized tampering, etc.).
One conventional approach to installing a blank panel over an opening of an equipment rack is for the user to mount a pair of catch members to the vertical rails at the opening of the rack using hardware. In particular, the user aligns holes of a first catch member over appropriate mounting holes of a first vertical rail (e.g., the front vertical rail on the left-hand side), and fastens the first catch member to the first vertical rail by attaching hardware through the aligned holes (e.g., screws, nuts and bolts, etc.). Then, the user secures a second catch member to a second vertical rail (e.g., the front vertical rail on the right-hand side) by attaching hardware in a similar manner. Finally, the user pushes a blank panel against the mounted catch members such that latching tabs of the blank panel latch the blank panel to the catch members thus holding the blank panel in place to cover the opening.
Unfortunately, there are deficiencies to the above-described conventional approach to mounting a blank panel to an equipment rack using hardware. For example, the use of hardware to fasten catch members to the vertical rails of the equipment rack increases the time and costs for installing blank panels. That is, the manufacturer must provide the hardware (e.g., screws, nuts, bolts, etc.) in addition to the catch members, and the user (e.g., the customer, a hired technician, etc.) must meticulously mount the catch members to the vertical rails using the provided hardware, thus increasing the overall costs and amount of labor involved in installing the blank panel.
Additionally, in some installation locations, electronic equipment may already be in operation prior to installing a blank panel. Unfortunately, it is dangerous to mount the catch members to the vertical rails using hardware while the electronic equipment is running. For example, a user could inadvertently drop a metal screw or a metal nut into the operating equipment while installing the catch members and the hardware and, thus, damage or destroy the equipment. As another example, the user could inadvertently touch a live conductor within the equipment rack with a conductive tool (e.g., a screwdriver, a wrench, etc.) used by the user when installing the catch members and the hardware and, thus, sustain an injury (e.g., a shock, a burn, etc.).
Furthermore, the user could accidentally drop or misplace the hardware prior-to installing the blank panel thus raising the possibility (i) that the blank panel will be installed unsafely or incorrectly (e.g., without all of the required hardware), or (ii) that the installation of the blank panel will be delayed (e.g., due to the additional time needed to obtain replacement hardware for proper installation).
In contrast to the above-described conventional approach to installing a blank panel over an opening of an equipment rack using hardware, the invention is directed to techniques for fastening a panel to an electronic cabinet frame using grooved fasteners that secure to the electronic cabinet frame without the need for hardware. The fasteners permit fastening of the panel to the frame in a reliable fashion. Accordingly, installation can occur in a quick and simple manner without requiring extensive hardware costs and installation time. Moreover, the fasteners (if made of non-conductive material or if coated with non-conductive material) minimize the possibility of causing equipment damage or injury that could otherwise occur due to dropped conductive hardware or due to contacting live conductors using conductive tools that typically attach the hardware in the conventional panel mounting approach. Furthermore, since hardware is unnecessary, there are no installation delays or improper installations due to missing hardware.
One embodiment of the invention is directed to a method for fastening a panel (e.g., a filler panel) to an electronic cabinet frame. The method includes the step of inserting portions of rigid support members (e.g., rails) of the electronic cabinet frame into grooves defined by fasteners to attach the fasteners to the portions of the rigid support members of the electronic cabinet frame. The method further includes the steps of positioning catches (e.g., latching tabs) of the panel adjacent catch members of the fasteners, and moving the panel toward the fasteners such that the catches of the panel engage with the catch members of the fasteners to fasten the panel to the electronic cabinet frame. Accordingly, no screws or other hardware is required to mount either the fasteners or the panel.
In one arrangement, the method further includes the steps of disengaging the catches of the panel from the catch members of the fasteners to unfasten the panel from the electronic frame, and prying the fasteners from the portions of the rigid support members of the electronic cabinet frame (e.g., manually opening the fasteners in a hinge-like manner) to detach the fasteners from the portions of the rigid support members of the electronic cabinet frame. Accordingly, the fasteners are removable from the frame without the need of a special hardware removal tool.
Another embodiment of the invention is directed to a rack system having an electronic cabinet frame to support electronic equipment. The electronic cabinet frame includes a set of rigid support members (e.g., vertical rails). The rack system further includes a panel assembly to cover an access area defined by the electronic cabinet frame. The panel assembly includes (i) a panel, and (ii) a set of fasteners to fasten the panel to an electronic cabinet frame. Each fastener has a base portion defining a groove such that, when a portion of a rigid support member of the set of rigid support members inserts within the groove defined by the base portion of that fastener, the base portion attaches to the portion of that rigid support member of the set of rigid support members. Each fastener further includes a catch portion coupled to the base portion of that fastener. The catch portion is configured to engage with the panel to fasten the panel to the electronic cabinet frame when the portion of that rigid support member of the set of rigid support members inserts within the groove defined by the base portion.
The features of the invention, as described above, may be employed in electronic systems, assemblies and methods such as those of EMC Corporation of Hopkinton, Mass.